Internship takes communication student to red carpet and beyond

By Lisa Angelucci
Collegian Editor
September 13, 2006

For many college students, a summer internship means imprisonment in a cubicle for 40 hours a week, trying to get the most experience possible while counting the days until the return to campus.

For senior communication major, Stephanie Viano, a summer internship meant traveling throughout Europe, attending red-carpet screenings and meeting some of the stars at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival in France.

Viano spent three weeks in the south of France as an intern for the American Pavilion of Los Angeles. The Pavilion runs a Student Filmmakers program and is considered to be the major American presence at international film festivals like the Cannes.

Her journey began in the fall of 2005, when Viano heard about the internship program from a pamphlet distributed to film students by professor Bill Wine. After making it through several rounds of the application process, Viano learned in February that she had been accepted.

Although the location was glamorous, Viano’s job responsibilities were similar to that of many interns. She worked for the Green Team, which was an attempt to make the festival environmentally friendly.

“The job was basically asking people to become more aware of what they’re throwing out and what could potentially be recycled,” said Viano. “It wasn’t the most exciting job, but we only did it for a few hours a day.”

The tasks may have been menial, but the opportunities were unique. When she wasn’t dealing with disposables, Viano was able to take in the rest of what the film festival had to offer.

“The first day of the festival, we were wondering who our first celebrity sighting would be, and sure enough, the entire cast of The Da Vinci Code walked right by us. It was like the Holy Grail of celebrity sightings because The Da Vinci Code was the biggest hyped film screening at Cannes,” Viano said.

After the world premiere of Al Gore’s An Incovenient Truth, however, it got even better. Viano not only was able to attend the premiere, but also had a chance to meet the former vice president.

“He just let anyone come up to him after and talk with him or take a picture with him. He was actually very friendly and charismatic. It was just cool to meet the former vice president, so I was a little star struck,” said Viano.

With all of the star sightings, Viano’s final highlight may come as a surprise: walking on the red carpet.

“That was on my list of things to do before I died,” said Viano.

Overall, she believes the internship was a great experience, especially because she hopes to work in the film industry someday.

“I learned a lot about the film industry. I got to watch it work right in front of me.” Viano said. “Plus, I met a ton of great people that I would love to work with in the future.”

Working or otherwise, it won’t be unlikely to find Viano at more film festivals in the future.

“It’s gotten me totally into the film festival scene now!”

angelucci1@lasalle.edu